July 26, 2011

As most of you saw earlier, Charles Mann (6'5" PG) committed to Coach Fox last week. Mann is rated at 3 star guard by both Scout and Rivals. Rivals has him listed as a Top 150 player nationally.

Both Rivals and Scout listed Mann as having an offer from UConn. If that offer was legit, I can assure that he's better than the 140th ranked player in the nation. Jim Calhoun doesn't come all the way to Atlanta unless he thinks the kid can ball.

Additionally, Mann is on the same AAU team as Marcus Hunt (6'6" SF). Hunt is ranked as 4-stars by Rivals and Scout. Hunt is a Top 100 player from Rivals. Signing a true SF would ensure that Kentavious Caldwell could stay at the SG position where his body type is more ideally suited.

Mann is also good friends with uber recruit William Shaq Goodwin (6'8" PF). Goodwin is ranked in the Top 26 players nationally by both Scout and Rivals. He hasn't decided which sport he wants to play in HS, but UGA is very much in the mix. He's the must have difference maker in this class who still lists UGA very highly.

Lastly, UGA appears to be in good shape with Kenny Gaines (6'4" SG). Gaines also plays with the Georgia Stars AAU program with Hunt and Mann. He is listed as 3 stars by Scout and Rivals. The Dawgs need to ink all four of these kids to build a sustainable recruiting pipeline.

Was Mann's signing the momentum the class needs for 2012? Hopefully. The early signing period is mid-November so we'll know soon enough.

4
comments:

stick jackson
said...

ESPN has him #88 nationally, on which I don't put enormous stock, but Dan on the Rivals hoops board said that's the right ballpark, and I do think Dan knows a lot about Georgia prospects and has seen the top guys play numerous times.

Guys im making an early prediction I think getting Mann committed will also help us with another prospect Evan Nolte yes I know he is currenty committed to Virginia but I think a year playing with Mann at Milton will show Evan UGA is the best fit for him.

WRT football, I like to think the last few years have made me as beady-eyed a realist as once can be and still be a fan, but I freely admit to being fond of chasing my throat-searing shots of hoops reality with a little sunshine. And yeah, Dan the Man is a pretty reliable supplier.

I think of it as a defense mechanism. Being a fan is supposed to be fun, after all, and all too often the only fun in hoops for years at a stretch has been of the let's-think-happy-thoughts-before-events-play-out-and-reality-kicks-us-in-our-collective-nads variety.